This is the city: Los Angeles, California. I work here. I'm an ex-mayor. Los Angeles is a magnet for people from all over the world. Some of them run for public office. Inevitably some of them stray from the golden rule and rule for those that have the gold. That's when I go to work. My name is Yorty. I'm a dead pol.

From the Downtown News: Could that be a IBEW/DWP Strongman Brian "D'Arcy Rizzo Call Greuel" flying over 200 Spring Street?

** Blogger's Note: We want to wish our cyber audience a safe Halloween as the current "Tonto Huevon Officeholder" is offering "Political Tricks and Treats" to buy himself another four years on the Public Payroll (but I digress). For the Seventh Year, the reigning "Scribe of Wit" among the local Political Commentators, the Downtown News Editor Jon Regardie, keyboards another Edition of a City Hall-oween. We link to it here and "cut and paste" excerpts for your enjoyment below---Scott Johnson.

Money Changes Everything: You’re back in the hallway when the mid-40s man from before runs by again. This time he’s being chased by a much younger woman, and boy does she look angry. She throws something at him. Is that a suit? Yes. He dodges it, then tosses an absurdly large, albeit unspecified, amount of money at her. Poof! She disappears. What’s happening? Hey, that man is Huizar and the woman is his former Deputy Chief of Staff Francine Godoy. Interesting, you think: She brought a suit toward him, he flung a pile of money at her, and she went away. You have no idea what any of this could possibly mean.'

Follow the Leader: Back in the hallway you hear music. You see a line of individuals dancing happily down the hall while a man in front blows something that looks like a whistle. You think the tune is familiar and hear the people warbling, “It’s not about me, it’s about we!” The man in front blows his whistle, veers left and the whole line leans left. He veers right and so does the line. Up, down, around the town, goose step, walk like an Egyptian — they all follow wherever he goes. Suddenly you recognize the man as Council President Herb Wesson, but why is he dressed as the Pied Piper? You count 13 people following him and notice a resemblance to City Council members. Gosh, you wonder, how come the council is following the Pied Piper, doing whatever he wants and going wherever he leads them?